sa boxing trio at crossroads

Jeffrey "The Mongoose" Mathebula, Silence "Real Deal" Mabuza and Isaac "The Angel" Hlatswayo will be involved in career-defining fights.

Victory will guarantee these boxers fame and fortune, especially Mathebula and Hlatswayo who will fight for world titles.

They are gym mates at Nick Durandt's resourceful establishment in Jeppe Street, downtown Johannesburg, and are promoted by Branco Sports Production.

Mathebula, a former SA and World Boxing Council International champion, will kick off action on April 30 when he challenges Celestino Caballero for the International Boxing Federation and World Boxing Association junior featherweight belts.

Promoter Branco Milenkovic will promote this fight jointly with Warriors Promotions at the Roberto Duran Stadium in Panama. Milenkovic revealed yesterday that SABC Sport will televise on it on Blow by Blow on a delayed arrangement.

Then on May 29, the charismatic Mabuza will fight Colombian Yonnhy Perez in an IBF mandatory bantamweight eliminator. Milenkovic said the venue will be confirmed later.

The winner will challenge Joseph Agbeko. The Ghanaian who is based in the US fights under Don King Promotions.

Four weeks later (June 26), also at a venue to be confirmed later, Hlatswayo will challenge IBF welterweight champion Joshua Clottey, another Ghanaian based in the US.

The IBF has given promoters Bob Arum and Milenkovic until April 30 to reach an agreement or they will call for purse bids.

Milenkovic added that he was negotiating for his two junior bantamweight mandatory challengers, Simphiwe Nongqayi (IBF) and Evans Mbamba (WBC), to challenge for the respective titles, which are both held by Australian Vic Darchinyan.